[FastNcurious]

hello guys, I have been trying to solve a crank, sputter then no start condition on my new to me 2007 335i. I am out of ideas at the moment and need some input on whatever i might be missing or doing wrong.

I bought a 2007 335i with a damaged engine from an auto auction earlier this year. I have since put a new motor in and bolted everything up but cant get the car to start. I am not sure what car the replacement engine came out of but it is an XI model so i used the oil pan and oil pick up tube from the blown engine. when i try to start the engine it sputters like its about to start and then just cranks and cranks but never starts. while cranking i notice the rpm needle rises to 100 rpm and drops back to zero when the starter disengages.

I have scanned severally with inpa and ista and there are no errors that will explain the no start condition, none the less i fixed all errors one at a time and now car is error free but still wont start.

THINGS I HAVE DONE
1 i have put in new plugs and confirmed that there is spark
2 i have confirmed there is fuel. i can hear the fuel pump prime when i open the door. I confirmed low fuel pressure through ista and inpa and it was holding at about 72 psi.
3 i did a compression test before and after cleaning the intake valves. before cleaning the valves compression was kind of low in the 90 to 120 range but after cleaning cyl 1 had 150 psi, cyl 2 140 psi, cyl 3 140 psi, cyl 4 140 psi, cyl 5 155 psi, cyl 6 140 psi. while cleaning the intake valves i noticed the connectors for the vanos solenoids were not plugged in correctly so i swapped them to the correct position.
4 i have checked engine ground
5 i have checked and checked all connectors are plugged in correctly
6 i have tried resetting adaptations .

is it possible timing has skipped a tooth?
could the crankshaft or cam shaft sensors be faulty and not throw a code? is there a way to test these sensors?
is there something i am missing? anything else i should check?

Also when cranking i hear a not so loud puff puff puff kind of backfire ish kind of noise. could the exhaust cam timing be off? i dont have a timing tool but is there a way to know for sure if my timing is off without the tool?

all inputs and ideas are welcome
thanks all

[JuniorB]

I highly doubt a fuel pump primes with a door being open, or even hear a stock pump. The ignition powers the engine, but I’d pull the line in a container and cycle the ignition to verify fuel. Two things need more info, the history of the engine, and verification of what happen to the old one.

[Milan]

Bad HPFP on the new motor?

[iminhell1]

Based on my engine, that compression is low. I'm running about 185 across the board.

But if the rings are dry, and now fuel washed, maybe that's why you seem low.

I kinda want to say to remove fuel and toss in some light oil to get the rings to grab again. Let it sit wet overnight to get a good soak. Then add fuel again and see if it'll pop off.

But it could be timing jumped. I don't know these things well enough to know how much compression drops per tooth, but roughly 40 psi sounds like it might be possible. You'd think it'd throw a vanos code though, even on just cranking.

[FastNcurious]

Originally Posted by JuniorB

I highly doubt a fuel pump primes with a door being open, or even hear a stock pump. The ignition powers the engine, but I’d pull the line in a container and cycle the ignition to verify fuel. Two things need more info, the history of the engine, and verification of what happen to the old one.

I dont know how if this applies to every 335i out there but mine primes when the doors are opened as do many others from what i have been reading around.
I verified I was getting fuel and at the right pressure too.
The previous engine had a leaking OFHG, oil got on the serpentine belt, belt shredded and got sucked into the engine through the crank seal..........

i know little of the history about the replacement engine except that it is from an XI model. I bought it from a dismantler who assured me that it ran before it was pulled out of the car, also had my mechanic inspect it and he assured me al was well

[FastNcurious]

Originally Posted by iminhell1

Based on my engine, that compression is low. I'm running about 185 across the board.

But if the rings are dry, and now fuel washed, maybe that's why you seem low.

I kinda want to say to remove fuel and toss in some light oil to get the rings to grab again. Let it sit wet overnight to get a good soak. Then add fuel again and see if it'll pop off.

But it could be timing jumped. I don't know these things well enough to know how much compression drops per tooth, but roughly 40 psi sounds like it might be possible. You'd think it'd throw a vanos code though, even on just cranking.

thank you all for the input, I think i found the problem.
I was playing around with ista d earlier today and under vehicle management---->troubleshooting---> text search, i typed in N54 timing and there were instructions there on how to verify timing.
i followed the instructions and was able to confirm exhaust cam was off about 3 to 4 teeth
took a while but i was able to time the camshafts without a timing tool as the instruction already explained how everything was supposed to be lined up
Ran the compression test again with the valve cover still off and
cylinder 1 - 185
cylinder 2 - 185
cylinder 3 - 210
cylinder 4- 180
cylinder 5 - 195
cylinder 6 - 195
i think its safe to say my valves are still intact, but i am trying to figure out what caused the car to skip timing initially before i put everything back together.